Bad bullpen now means 3 things for the KC Royals

A sad but obvious truth, conclusive evidence of which has long haunted the KC Royals, reared its ugly and dangerous head at Kauffman Stadium again Tuesday night.

The truth: Kansas City's bullpen is more than troubled, more than shaky, more than inconsistent. It's bad. Just plain bad.

And sadly, the pen was every bit of that Tuesday in a 7-1 Royals' home loss to Cleveland that increased the club's losing streak to seven straight when it can least afford such a skid. The defeat dropped third-place Kansas City 5.5 games behind the American League-leading Guardians and allowed the surging Tigers, who've won seven of their last 10, to close within 4.5 games of the Royals for the third AL Wild Card, a position they now share with Boston.

This latest sorry bullpen effort came, somewhat predictably, as had so many of its predecessors — the game was close after the Royals scored once in the sixth to make it 2-1, but the pen gave too much aid and comfort to the enemy,

Sam Long, who took over from starter Brady Singer with two away in the top of the sixth, yielded a single and two-run homer to the first pair of batters he faced, then hit the fourth. Lucas Erceg, who'd pitched so magnificently after the Royals picked him up at the trade deadline before slipping recently, struggled in the eighth and was charged with the three runs James McArthur allowed to score — the latter relieved the former with the bases loaded and promptly issued a run-scoring walk and two-run single.

So it was that, the brief scoreless stints of Daniel Lynch IV and Chris Stratton notwithstanding, the Royals' bullpen squandered a close game and handed Cleveland five of its seven runs.

What now? What does this beleaguered relief corps mean to Kansas City and its tough down-the-stretch battle for the right to play October baseball?

Three things, really.

If the KC Royals nab a playoff spot, it will be in spite of the bullpen

Analysis must sometimes be brutal, and this is one of those times. That as a unit this bullpen is bad is a given (its 4.54 ERA ranks 26th among the 30 major league clubs); that it probably won't improve measurably over the last 22 games of the season is all but certain. There is simply too much to fix and not enough time or ways to get it on track.

Encouraging, though, is the remarkable fact that the Royals have come this far — their first playoff spot since 2015 is within reach — with relievers who've never dominated for a long period. How this club has done that under such circumstances is almost inexplicable, but it's happened despite a bullpen that defies the conventions of contention. Should Kansas City qualify for the postseason, it will truly be in spite of its own pen.

The club's hitters must pick up its relievers

A stellar bullpen, which the Royals haven't had all season, can help overcome an average, or even weak, offense, which the club suddenly finds itself afflicted with. After going 4-for-30 with only one extra-base hit Tuesday night, the Royals are hitting .139 (26-for-186) and averaging two runs per contest over their last six games.

Even Bobby Witt Jr. is struggling: he's batting .181 during that same period and his pair of Tuesday night singles gave him his first multi-hit game since Aug. 25. Salvador Perez is 2-for-25 during the club's current losing streak. And Vinnie Pasquantino's fractured thumb will almost certainly keep him out of any more regular season games.

The club's slump at the plate must stop soon. The bats need to come alive to protect that troubled bullpen.

The starting rotation has to go deep

Because manager Matt Quatraro can rely consistently on so few of his relievers, his starters, who compose the best rotation the club has had for years, can't get knocked out of games early. Quatraro's best four — Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Cole Ragans, and Brady Singer — must, as they have all season, give him a lot of innings, and Alec Marsh, recently recalled and expected to hold down the fifth spot in the rota, needs to do the same.

Going deep, and doing so effectively, will help minimize the bullpen's exposure. And that will be a good thing.

More KC Royals content from Kings of Kauffman